semirahrose:

Things that bother me: When fans and writers portray Soulless!Sam as either a robot or a violent, domineering sadist who (more often than not) gets his kicks from abusing sensitive, helpless Dean. Almost every single piece of fic I’ve ever seen with Soulless!Sam does these things. A lot of meta or s6 commentary starts with the same, baseless assumptions, and I have no idea where they’re coming from. Let’s talk about Soulless!Sam’s actual, canon portrayal.

• Soulless!Sam knew something was wrong with him but didn’t know what it was. He just knew it made him better at what he was raised to do, so he kept at it. Lacking empathy and guilt, he could have chosen to do something that would bring him fame, safety, or material gain. Instead, he chose to put his life at risk and save people.
• Completely lacking the ability to empathize, Soulless!Sam still (mistakenly, but with good intentions) thought it would be best to let Dean live what he assumed was a happy life with Lisa and Ben.
• When he was reunited with Dean at the beginning of the season, Sam swept in to administer the cure for the Djinn’s poison, carried an unconscious Dean out instead of leaving him alone to recover, and drove him to a safehouse to watch over him until he woke.
• When Dean beat Sam into unconsciousness (not knowing he was soulless at the time and directly after a concerned Sam said he needed help), Soulless!Sam did not raise even a single finger to

  defend himself. He just accepted Dean’s violence.

• In terms of sex, (as far as we can tell from the reactions of his sexual partners) Soulless!Sam didn’t ‘take’ from his partners–quite the opposite, in fact; it seems like he prioritized their pleasure. 
• Soulless!Sam wanted to be normal for Dean, so he asked his brother to be his moral compass and help him act and behave appropriately.
• Soulless!Sam only resorted to violence when he felt there was no other choice, but even while he was soulless, he recognized that it was wrong and admitted that it would be better to go back to being the ‘other Sam.’
• SAM: I don’t know if how I am is better or worse. It’s different. You get the job done, and nothing really hurts. That’s not the worst thing. But I’ve been thinking. And it was… it was kinda harder. But there are also things about it I remember that I… Let’s just say I think I should probably go back to being him. (6.08)
• Sam felt that Dean only cared for the Sam who was Dean’s ‘little brother,’ and not for the Sam who existed in front of him, and only when he thought it put his life in danger–and since he did not have a soul and would simply cease to exist if he died, life was all he had–did he actually act out against Bobby in self-defense. (6.11)
• Soulless!Sam apologizes more than once to Bobby, explaining that he’s only doing what he has to in order to keep them from killing him. He does this even though he supposedly cannot feel emotions. (Spoiler: Season 6 portrays him with a very real but also limited range of emotions, among them amusement, satisfaction, concern, and fear.)
• Soulless!Sam smiled while watching Dean play with a baby (6.02). He did it for no one’s benefit. Anyone who could have seen him was turned away. (I mean, look at him.)
• Soulless!Sam still considered Bobby to be like a father to him. (6.11)
• While Soulless!Sam honestly admitted that he couldn’t care for other people, he added qualifiers to it when he talked about Dean, saying, “I don’t even really care about you“
  as if he was shocked that he didn’t have the same level of emotion for Dean that he expected. (6.08)
• Despite saying that he doesn’t care, Soulless!Sam does everything he can, including biting into the flesh of his own forearm (keep in mind that Soulless!Sam can still feel physical pain), to save Dean when he needs help. He repeatedly asks about and looks for his brother when Dean is in danger.

In conclusion: Soulless!Sam was a (very sassy) amoral pragmatist who lacked empathy and had a very limited and diluted emotional range, but he consistently tried to do what he thought (or was told) was right.